The Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) on Saturday said it has summoned the airport housekeeping, exterminators, and other service providers for a meeting on Monday following a string of pest-sightings at the Philippines’ main gateway.

The latest incident, as seen in a viral video posted on social media by a passenger on Friday, showed a cockroach crawling on one of the chairs at the departure area of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3.

Vince, who was traveling to Bacolod with his friends Jay and Mary, said they were waiting for their 5 a.m. flight when they saw the cockroach.

“While waiting, naisipan namin to sleep sana. (But) something caught our attention… Hindi na kami natulog, hinintay na namin yung plane talaga,” he recalled in an interview with ABS-CBN News.

(While waiting, we thought of catching up on sleep but something caught our attention. We could not sleep after that. We just waited until we could ride the plane.)

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According to the trio, they heard the news about passengers getting bitten by bed bugs after sitting on chairs in NAIA terminals, and about the rat that was caught on video running around near the ceiling of a boarding gate at Terminal 3.

When they got to the airport, they were already on alert. But Mary said they did not actually expect to have their own encounter with a pest.

“Ako, actually, before umupo, finlashlight ko yung mga upuan, tinignan ko kung meron pa… Since nag-viral na siya, I think it’s an opportunity na rin for the management of NAIA to improve their services,” said Jay.

The MIAA admitted that such incidents are unacceptable.

Aside from the disinfections it has ordered over the past several days, the management also summoned the airport’s housekeeping and pest control service providers for a review of their contracts.

“Kung ano pa mang peste yan— ipis, surot, rodent, anay, ang expectation siyempre, ng airport, inengage namin ang services nila as experts on that field of extermination, then we should have an expectation na wala pong ganitong mga pest or rodents sa ating airport,” said MIAA Head Executive Assistant Chris Bendijo.

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Also included in the meeting are the airport’s medical and quarantine staff. The pest control agency suspects the bed bugs found on several chairs in NAIA came from abroad.

“Kung halimbawa nga ay galing sa ibang bansa ang mga bugs na ito, what process can we put in place para maiwasan yung mga ganito? We will explore that,” added Bendijo.

Meanwhile, the Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) told passengers they do not need to worry about any possible infestation in the airport, saying it conducts a weekly deep cleaning of facilities.

MCIA Corporate Affairs Manager Dee Verano said the airport also implements precautions to prevent such problems.

“In Terminal 2, most especially, given that the structure was made out of wood, we prohibit animals, plants in the airport. It’s a measure to make sure that we’re not vulnerable to any bugs or insects because the plants themselves can carry insects, right?” said Verano.

The MCIA is run by a private consortium.

Rodent spotted roaming in NAIA | ABS-CBN News 

Jay, Vince, and Mary hope that with the looming privatization of NAIA, the country’s busiest airport may also improve.

But the MIAA insisted that it is already working hard to make NAIA better even before the scheduled rehabilitation.

“Whether it’s still our time, before the privatization, until privatization and even after we act as regulators, our only hope is to improve our airport. Wala naman po kaming ibang hangad dito,” said Bendijo.